Timed sprinkler



A, W. PFEFFER TIMED SPRINKLER March 7, 1939.

Filed Feb. 1, 1938 INVENTOR d m/fl 4 ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 7, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 12 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in sprinklers.

It is an objectof this invention to provide a sprinkler which will automatically shutoff the water after the sprinkler has been in operation for a period of time. Often, a householder desires to have a sprinkler operating when he is away from home for some hours, or for an entire evening, but does not want the sprinkler operating for the entire period of his absence, and in accordance with this invention, the sprinkler can be adjusted to operate, roughly, for a period of time and then it will shut off so that water will not be wasted by an excess of sprinkling over and above the amount necessary for the lawn.

The device of my invention is embodiedina float controlled valve means for shutting oiT the water, and it is a feature of the invention toprovide a reservoir float chamber that is fed by the spray from the sprinkler, by a receiving well that has a restricted discharge into said reservoir. By means of a novel valve control, this restricted discharge may be regulated in such a manner as to time the shut-off operation.

The invention has many other features and objects which willbe more fully described in connection with the accompanying drawing and which will be more particularly pointed out in and by the appended claims.

lnthe drawing:

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of the sprih: kler taken on line I-I of Fig. 2.

Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of a central portion of the sprinkler taken on line 3.3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 44 of Fig. 2.

Like characters of reference designate similar parts throughout the diiferent figures. of the drawing.

In the specific form shown in the drawing, the invention includes a hollow body of annular form having a peripheral wall I, a bottom wall 2, adapted to form the base, and a top wall}. The interior of said body forms a reservoir float chamber which I will. designate at 4. It may be. stated that the foregoing structure may be of cast metal, or of stamped material, and that the invention does not particularly relate to the material or the manner in which it is formed or fabricated. In the present illustration, I have shown the bottom andperipheral walls 2 and I, respectively, shaped orstamped from a single piece of sheet material, and likewise, the topwall is similarly formed although this particular iconstruction is not essential as it may be varied within the scope of the appended claims.

The top wall 3 has a downwardly extending flange -5, which ioutwardly telescopes the upper margin of wall I and may be secured or remov- 5 ably fitted thereto 'in any' desired manner. Said 1 upper wall 3 has an upwardly extending portion 6 of the cross section shown in Fig. 1, 'and'annular in form, as shown in Fig. 2, which functions to constitute the outer wall of a receiving well indicated at l. The inner wall of said Well 1 may be formed by an annular fiange 8, having an angle portion 9, suitably secured to top wall 3. A stream spreading'means is provided for the sprinkler which isfcommonly called arose, and which may be formed 'by a foraminated or reticulated material of any type desired and which is herein shown in the form of a screen Ill. This screen is domed across and above the upper wall 3, and its free marginsll may be bent downwardly to fit insidethe inner wall 8 of well I, and be secured thereto in any desired manner.

Thus it will be seen that the receiving well I is disposed'in surrounding relation to 'the rose I I] but because of the spread of the'sprinkling stream issuing from the rose, the spray will maintain'the well I substantially full of water while the sprinkler is in operation.

The inner w'allfi is provided with bearings I2, through which members of thefioat, to bepresently described, are adaptedto be slidably guided, and these bearings I2, which aresuitablysecured to the periphery of wall 8, are high enough so that leakage fromlwell'l cannot result through said bearings, as will later appear. 35

Reference will next be made to the means for supplying water to the sprinkler.

I have shown a water ingress orsupply pipe at I3 which extends inwardly from thewall I, in a. substantially horizontal direction, toward 40 the center of the reservoir '4. The outer end of said pipe may be flanged at I5 and secured to wall I, and is provided with threads I6 for attachment to a hose. A valve. pipe I! is disposed substantially vertically and centrally of the 5 chamber or reservoir l and has an upper section with a relatively reduced bore I 8 which'terminates at its lower end in a valve seat I'll, the upper end 2!) of saidpi pe discharging through top wall 3 against the 'sp-reading'mea'ns I!) which spreads 50 the stream into a sprinkling spray. Wall 3 may have a tubular fiang'e' ZI, into which the'end 20 of pipe I1 is telescoped. Below the valve seat I9 the bore of pipe I! is enlarged and it junctures with pipe I3 and is provided with an opening-22 to receive'water therefrom. The pipe l1 extends below its juncture withpipe I3 to form a dead flow valve well 23. Opposite pipe I3 I provide pipe H with a drain-01f projection 24 in which a valve closure 25 is seated. A stem 26, connected with said closure 25, has a closure 2'! seated in a chamber drain-oi projection 28, secured to wall Said stem 26 extends through said projection 28 and is provided with a head 29, accessible from the exterior of the sprinkler. A spring 30, interposed between said head 29 and said projection, maintains closures and 21 seated but when said head 29 is shifted inwardly,

Y I A tapered valve closure 3| is disposed in said well 23 when in an open position, and the same may rest upon the projection 32 of a plug 32 that is threaded into an upturned portion 33 in bottom wall 2. This plug 32 may be removed when the parts are assembled or for other purposes. However, it will be clear that because the well 23 is below the juncture of pipes I3 and I1, that it will be substantially free from velocity flow that moves upwardly from pipe l3 to pipe il and will therefore be out of range of the flow,

or in other words, there will be such an absence of flow that it will be in a dead flow area. When said valve closure 3| is moved upwardly against seat |9 it will shut off the flow of water, and it will be noted that the area of the bottom of this closure is greater than that of the top thereof.

Said closure 3| has a stem 34 extending longitudinally in pipe l1 and through the rose H], which may be provided with a ferrule 35 to facilitate sliding movement of stem 34 therethrough. Above rose Ill said stem is provided with one member of a lost motion connection which is shown in the form of a loop 36, and abovethe loop 36 the end of the stem is indicated at 31.

Reference will next be made to the float actuating means for controlling the closure 3|.

A float is indicated at 38, and the same may be cylindrical and be provided with a central opening 39 to provide clearance for pipe IT. Said float may be hollow as shown, or of any buoyant material desired, but will preferably be of sufficient rigidity to be self-stable. The remaining member of the lost motion connection may take the form of a bail having limbs 39 adjustably connected with the float 38, as indicated at 43, and extending upwardly through top wall 3 and through bearings I2, in such a manner that leakage from the well 1 will be prevented around the sliding connection thereby formed.

Said ball has a bight portion 4| which extends across the top of rose I0 and through the loop 36 whereby the stem 34 will have lost motion connection with the float 38. Said bail is preferably made of a rigid rod of the shape shown in Fig. 1.

Reference will next be made to the timing valves whereby a periodic or timed and restricted delivery of water from well 1 to chamber 4 may be effected.

I have shown two timing valves generally indicated at 42, in Fig. 2, but in many cases only one is necessary, and as they are identical in Said valve consists of a sleeve 43 adapted to be threaded through top wall 3 in the well portion 7, and having a series of staggered holes 44 above wall 3, and opening into said well 1. Thus, water from well I may readily flow by gravity into said sleeve 43 through holes 44, and down into chamber 4. A regulating screw 45, which may have a head 46, is threaded into said sleeve 43, and when it is turned downwardly it will serve to close openings 44, dependent upon the extent of adjustment of the regulating screw, and likewise, it will open more holes when adjusted upwardly. While I do not pretend to provide a timing action to the precision of minutes, I can roughly time the action of the sprinkler by these valves, after trial, to an extent amply sufiicient for the purpose. With two or more valves I can increase the restricted flow to shorten the period of operation of the sprinkler but usually one valve will be sufficient.

While the operation will be clear from the foregoing, it may be briefly recapitulated as follows:

Before the Water is turned on, the parts will be in the position shown in Fig. 4, with chamber 4 empty, and closure 3| not only seated by gravity against projection 32', but also held down by theweight of float 38, as exercised through the bail 4| and stem 34. When the water is turned on it will enter pipe l3 and then pipe H and flow upwardly against rose Ill which will spread the stream into a sprinkling spray. Enough of the spray will descend into well i to fill the same and the restricted discharge through valves 42 will gradually fill the reservoir chamber 4. At this point it is desired to point out that the rush of water through pipe l3 will be upward into pipe H, and hence the valve 3| will be below the flow area and will not be influenced thereby because it will be in a dead flow area. The oppositely disposed valve chamber formed by the projection 24 will increase this effect. As the water rushes up the bore l8, around stem 34, the skin friction will exert a lifting action on the stem 34 which will tend to raise closure 3| but this will be overcome by the weight of the float 38 acting to hold the closure 3| seated against the projection 32" with the clearance between the bottom of the closure 3| and: the plug 3 2, as shown in Fig. 1. 7

When the sprinkler has been in operation the well I will have filled and will have discharged into chamber 4 to gradually raise the level therein in accordance with the adjustment of valves 42. When the level in chamber4 reaches float 38 the latter will begin. to raise but its buoyancy will not at this time be at the maximum, and hence it could not at this time exert the same lifting stress on stem 34 that would be possible at the time that the float had attained a maximum buoyancy. In other words, the maximum buoyancy of the float would only be effective after the water level had risen above the float. Thus, while the float was not subjected to any load'it would gradually rise and take up the lost motion provided by the loop 36. After the bail portion 4| had engaged the upper end of the loop, then the float would exercise its full lifting power on the valve stem 34, and this lifting power, added to the ascending Stress exercised by the water on'stem 34, in bore l8, would be sufiicient to lift closure 3| against seat l9, as will now be clear. Thus, water would then be shut off into pipe l1 and the sprinkler would cease'to operate. Under some conditions, it is merely necessary for the float to lift or shift the valve closure 3| sufiiciently into the path of into 'engagement with seat l9. However, it will be the stream to cause the latter to finish this closing movement and :maintain the closure 3i seated against seat 19. This is especially true when the closure 3| has upper and lower faces of different areas, as shown.

It will also be clear that the lost motion connection enables the float to idly rise to a given range without performing any function against a load, so that after the slack has been taken up, the imposed load will slow up ascent of the float toward a final limit. However, it will be understood thatthe lost motion connection is not essential to all practical forms of the invention.

After the owner has returned home he will shut off the water at the usual hydrant or wall cock. This will not wholly release pressure in the sprinkler, hence the user will then press inwardly on head 29 and open valve closures 25 and 21, which will release pressure in pipe I3 into chamber 4, and will drain'the latter through valve projection 28, to entirely empty the chamber 4 so that the sprinkler will be ready for the next usage.

It will be noted that the lower end of closure 3| has a greater area than the upper end, and that because of the projection 32, the lower end of said closure is never allowed to .rest in flat abutting relation withplug 32. Hence, as closure 3| ascends into the flow of the stream, the latter will pass into engagement with the larger lower end of the closure, which is in clearance relation to the wall of the valve well, and this differential will assist the float, and the action of the stream on stem 34, to elevate and will be effective to hold closure 3| understood that the float will be effective to seat the valve, irrespective of: the differential of areas of the valve, and irrespective of the lift imparted to the stem 34 by the upwardly moving stream.

It is believed the invention will be fully understood from the foregoing description, and I do not wish to be limited thereto except for such limitations as the claims may import.

I claim:

1. In a timed shut-01f sprinkler, an annular hollow body forming a reservoir float chamber and having a bottom wall forming a base and a top Wall having a sprinkler rose extending thereover, said top wall having an annular receiving well surrounding said rose and adapted to be fed from the spray, a timing valve in said well controlling delivery of water therefrom to said float chamber, a water ingress pipe extending from the periphery of said hollow body into the latter, a valve pipe extending substantially vertically in said body and juncturing with said ingress pipe to receive water therefrom and said valve pipe extending to and discharging through said top wall under said rose, said valve pipe having a valve seat above the juncture of said ingress pipe and extending below said juncture to form a dead flow valve well, a valve closure in said valve well adapted to coact with said valve seat and having a stem extending longitudinally in said valve pipe and through said rose and provided with a lost motion loop above said rose, and a valve actuating float in said float chamber having a bail with the limbs thereof extending slidably through said top wall and the bight portion extending above and across said rose and through said loop to permit of a limited ascent of said float before said bail actuates said valve stem to lift said valve closure.

2. In a timed shut-off sprinkler, a hollow body forming a reservoir float chamber and having a bottom wall forming a base and a top wall provided with a sprinkler rose and a receiving well adapted to be fed by the sprinkling spray, a timing-valve for controlling delivery of water from saidwell to said float chamber, a water ingress pipe extending into saidfloat chamber, a valve pipe disposed substantially vertically in said float chamber and having a communicating juncture with said ingress pipe and said valve pipe extending to and discharging through said top wall under said rose and being provided with a valve seat above said juncture and extending below said juncture to form a dead flow valve well, a valve closure in said valve well adapted to coact with said seat to shutoff the sprinkler and having a stem extending longitudinally in said valve pipe and slidably through said rose andbeing provided with a lost motion loop above said rose, and a valve actuating float in said chamber having a bail extending through said top wall and through said loop to elevate said closure after said float has been fully energized.

3. In a timed shut-01f sprinkler, a hollow body forming a reservoir float chamber and having bottom and top walls, said top wall having a stream spraying means and a receiving well adapted to be fed by the sprinkling spray and having a restricted discharge into said chamber. A valve pipe in said chamber discharging through said .top wall under said means and havinga valve seat and a dead flow valve well, a water ingress pipe delivering to said valve pipe between said seat and valve well, and a valve closure in said valve well adapted to coact with said seat to shut off the sprinkler and having a stem extending longitudinally of said valve pipe and through said top wall, and a float in said chamber having means extending through said top wall and con nected with said stem. to elevate said valve closure.

4. In a timed shut-oil sprinkler, a hollow body forming a reservoir float chamber and provided with a stream spreading means and a receiving well fed from the spray and having a restricted discharge into said chamber, a valve pipe in said body discharging against said means and having a dead flow valve well, a normally open valve in said pipe disposed in said well when open, and a float in said chamber operatively connected with said valve to close the latter when said chamber is fllled to a predetermined extent.

5. In a shut-off sprinkler, a hollow body forming a reservoir float chamber and provided with a stream spreading means and a receiving well fed by the spray and having a timed discharge into said chamber, valve controlled means for discharging water against said spreading means, and float mechanism in said chamber for actuating said valve means to shut off said sprinkler.

6. In a timed shut-off sprinkler, a hollow body forming a reservoir float chamber and provided with a stream spreading means and a receiving Well fed from the spray and having a restricted discharge into said chamber, a valve pipe for discharging water against said means, a valve in said pipe for shutting off the water, and a float in said chamber having lost motion connection means with said valve and said connection means having portions coactingin one extreme position for holding said valve open before said float is energized, and said connection means having portions movable to take up the play and coacting to move said valve toward a closing position upon ascent of said float.

'7. In a shut-off sprinkler, a hollow body forming a reservoir float chamber and provided with a sprinkler rose, said body having a receiving well fed from the spray and provided with a timing valve comprising a sleeve Opening through said well into saidchamber and having a series of holes opening to said well for passage of water therefrom through said sleeve into said chamber, a rod for selectively closing said holes to vary the extent of discharge into said chamber, valve controlled means' for discharging water against said rose, and a float mechanism in said chamber for actuating said Valve means to shut ofi the sprinkler.

8. In a shut-off sprinkler, a hollowbody forming a float chamber and provided with a rose and having a receiving well, fed by the spray, a timing valve in said well opening to the latter and to said chamber, means for varying delivery of water from said well to said chamber through said valve,

means for discharging water against said-rose;

' when said chamber is being filled.

V 9. In a timed shut-offsprinklen'a hollow body forming a float chamber and having a stream action on' saicl'valve in addition to the action of the water on said stem.

10. In a shut-off sprinkler, a hollow body forming a float chamber and provided. with stream spreading means, a pipe discharging water against said spreading means and having a dead flow valve well and a valve seat, a valve closure disposed in said well when unseated, float mechanism in said chamber. operatively connected with said valve closure for shifting the latter from said well into engagement with said seat, and means for admitting water to said chamber to actuate said float mechanism; a a a l1.'In a shut-Off sprinkler, a hollow body forming a float chamber and provided with stream spreading means, a pipe discharging water against said means and having a dead flow valve closure well communicating withbut out of the range of flow of the stream passing through said pipe, and said pipe havinga valve seat above said well, a valve closure disposed in said well when unseated, float mechanism in said chamber operatively connected with said valve closure for elevating the latter from said well into the path of d, the stream to'cause the latter to seat and main- I tain said valve closure seated, and means for admitting'water to said chamber to actuate said float mechanism.

12. In a'shut-off sprinkler, a hollow body forming a float chamber and provided with stream spreading means, a pipe discharging water against said means and having a dead flow Valve Well and 'a valve seat, a valve closure for said seat, float mechanism'in said chamber operatively connected with said valveclosure for holding the latter in said well by gravity, andmeans for admitting water to said chamber to actuate said float mechanism and cause the later to shift said valve closure sufliciently intothe flow of water in said pipe to cause the water to seat and hold said valve closure seated. 1

' ANTON W. PFEFFER. 

